President Obama Hosts President Bush For Unveiling Of Official Portraits

Meetings of current, former and future presidents are uncommon, and this one, on Jan. 7, 2009, was a once-in-28-years affair. From left, George H.W. Bush joins then-President-elect Obama, then-President George W. Bush and fellow former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter for lunch. It was the first time since 1981 that all living presidents had been together at the White House.

Former presidents often gather for significant events, such as funerals of heads of state and other major figures. Here, President George W. Bush, his wife Laura, former President George H.W. Bush, former President Bill Clinton, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice kneel by the body of Pope John Paul II inside St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, on April 6, 2005.

President Ronald Reagan and former Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter, offer a toast at the White House on Oct. 8, 1981 as the four met prior to the departure of the three former Presidents to Cairo for the funeral of President Sadat.

President Obama and his wife Michelle host a rare get-together with their White House predecessors on Thursday, as former President George W. Bush and his wife Laura had their official portraits unveiled.

President Barack Obama gestures toward former President George W. Bush, former first lady Laura Bush and first lady Michelle Obama, at the White House in Washington, Thursday, during a ceremony where the Bushs' portraits were unveiled.

In a rare moment of harmony in Washington, President Obama hosted former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush for the unveiling of the couple's official portraits.

It's a tradition that dates back to 1800, when the White House acquired its first work of art: a full-length portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart.

During a ceremony in East Room of the White House, President Obama noted that fact saying that while Washington is constantly engulfed in partisan bickering, the "Presidency transcends those differences."

He reminded a big, rowdy audience that "we all love this country" and are all trying to follow in the foot steps of the man whose portrait hangs first in the White House — the country's first president George Washington.

Obama praised Bush's "strength and resolve" as he stood in the rubble of New York City after the attacks of Sept. 11. And in a bit of comedy, also thanked him for leaving behind a "really good TV sports package."

President Bush was effusive in his thanks to the current president.

"We are overwhelmed," he said. And he teared up as he thanked his father, whose portrait already hangs in the White House.

He said his portrait brings a sense of symmetry. Now, the hall where it will be hung, will start with George W. and end with a George W.

He reminded the audience that when the White House was attacked by the British, Dolley Madison saved George Washington's portrait. He looked at the current first lady and said pointing at his portrait, "Michelle, if there's a fire, there's your man."

"As for Sanden, his as-yet-unveiled portrait of the former president depicts him standing in a room in the White House, 'almost smiling — it's more like a reassuring look,' the artist said. Sanden noted that painting President Bush's mouth was a little tricky, saying 'the smirk shows up when he doesn't want it, and he tends to mug for the camera, as though he can't help it.'

"Rendering the setting also presented difficulties. For reasons that Sanden doesn't understand, he wasn't permitted into the White House to take photographs or make sketches; instead he was sent to look at photographs of the room in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. In any case, photographs of the finished painting have been sent to President Bush for his approval, and to the director of the White House Historical Association, 'who didn't exactly approve it, but he didn't point out any errors, which is I guess the same thing.'"